Narrow Aisle Lift Trucks
The kind of electric truck that is made to operate within narrow aisles is called a Narrow Aisle Lift Truck. Standard storage aisles are just 3.6 meters wide, adequate space for a counterbalanced lift truck to pivot within the aisle. On the other hand, narrow aisles could be around 2.4 meters wide to as little as 1.8 meters. The narrow area requires specialized lift truck models which are capable of tight turns, small, and able to put away loads without pivoting. The common types of narrow-aisle trucks are order pickers, reach trucks and turret trucks.
Narrow-aisle reach trucks
Reach trucks were the very first narrow-aisle lift truck to be manufactured for warehouse use. These small trucks could turn with no trouble in narrow aisles because their design has eliminated the requirement for a huge counterweight. Stability is instead provided by outrigger arms extending in front of the truck. The downside of this design is that the outrigger arms could inhibit access to the storage rack because the truck cannot get close enough. These kinds of trucks really work well in a warehouse which is well lit, has even, clean floors, good flow of traffic and enough space for turning.
Turret trucks
The design of a turret truck includes forks on the side which turn. The forks pivot 90 degrees and move from side to side. The load can face forward whilst the operator drives down the aisle. Once stopped at the designated storage location, the forks of the truck pivot to the storage side and raise the load to their full extension, and then smoothly deposit the load before resuming their original position. Turret trucks are available with a wire guidance system that keeps the truck on its path in really narrow aisles. Operators remain at floor level in man-down trucks.